


After Everything is Over

by naiadNyx



Category: Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Minor Hubert/Ferdinand, Years after the war
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-05
Updated: 2019-08-05
Packaged: 2020-07-31 18:30:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,047
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20119705
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/naiadNyx/pseuds/naiadNyx
Summary: After the war ended, Edelgard and Byleth worked tirelessly to bring justice to those who slither in the dark.Now that everything is over, with the Empire in capable hands, they're free to live their lives as they wish.Or, in which I decide to fulfill Edelgard's wish of living peacefully after she's given up the role of Empress.





	After Everything is Over

"Ask her!"

"No, you ask her!"

"Didn’t you say you wanted to be as brave as Empress Edelgard?"

Byleth looked up at the sound of hushed voices coming from outside the house. She closed the notebook she had been writing in, carefully setting aside her quill as well.

"Fine. I’ll show you just how brave-" The children break off their argument as the topic of their conversation opens the door, looking down on them with a smile.

"Did you have a question?" Byleth looked at her students with amusement, watching them fidget slightly. Finally, one of the girls steps forward and tried to speak as confidently as she could manage.

"Are you the same Byleth that fought with the Empress? Did you know her?" the girl asked with shining eyes, and Byleth felt like she was about to ask for her autograph; it made her feel a bit guilty about what she knew she had to say.

"Is it because we share the same name?" The children look away, embarrassed. "I don’t think I have the green hair and emerald eyes, sorry to disappoint."

The children groan in disappointment, and one of them nudges the girl who had led them there. "Told you."

The girl smacks her friend’s hand away. "It’s not like it hurt to ask! Mrs. Byleth is really strong. She could totally be one of the heroes from the war!" Though Byleth was flattered, she knew the dangers of allowing such a conversation to continue.

“Did you remember to do your homework on sword techniques? Those are due tomorrow, I hope you know.” The kids nod enthusiastically, though enough of them start to drag off their friends, no doubt to ask for help on the assignment. Byleth is about to close the door when she sees someone walking towards her.

"I did say you should have changed your name, professor." Edelgard chastises. Byleth closes the door and turns to face her. “Your name is quite rare after all.” Edelgard places her hand on Byleth’s cheek, smiling softly.

"Well I do look quite different now than how the legends speak of me, so I don’t think it mattered much." Byleth leans into the warmth at her cheek, and reaches up with her own hand to hold Edelgard’s.

Edelgard sighs, and leans closer to her wife before pulling her in for a small kiss. "Honestly, we are fortunate we have no need to fear for our lives any more. Still, it would be prudent to be a bit more careful don’t you think?"

"I understand, Edel." Byleth smiles as Edelgard glares at her. "I thought you wanted me to be careful?"

"You know you have no need to call me by a fake name when it’s just the two of us." Edelgard chides. Byleth answers with only a small quirk of her lips, something Edelgard knows is the closest to a smirk Byleth tends to express. "By the way, I have a message from Hubert. It seems he and Ferdinand are going to be visiting soon."

Byleth looks up at her, a small hint of surprise on her face. "Is it that time already? As much as he worries about us I think he’s going to give away who we are with how often he visits."

Edelgard sighs as she steps back to set the letter on the table. "Honestly, his concern is appreciated, but it worries me considering he and Ferdinand should be taking care of the Empire now. I have to wonder how much work they procrastinate just to visit us." Contrary to her words, Edelgard was still smiling at the thought of reuniting with her close friends.

"It’s fine, El, I’m sure they aren’t nearly as busy as we were all those years ago." Even so many years later, after defeating the inhuman monsters threatening Fódlan, including all the former allies that had slithered and hid in the darkness, Edelgard’s heart still warmed every time Byleth called her by that name. It conjured jofyul memories of relying on each other in the midst of battle and of cold nights where she sought comfort in the arms of her lover after yet another nightmare.

Now, however, there were no more war cries or sounds of clashing blades, and the night terrors that had gripped her as a young adult only resurfaced rarely. Even the five years she had spent searching for her teacher now felt like nothing but another distant nightmare after so long. With the war had ended, and Lord Arundel and his allies defeated, Byleth and Edelgard finally had time to spend together without the ongoing stress of mortal peril.

Edelgard felt Byleth approach her, then carefully wrap her arms around Edelgard’s waist. "We have gone through so much together, haven’t we?" Edelgard spoke in a small voice, and for a moment she didn’t think Byleth heard her.

"We have. It’s hard to believe sometimes we no longer need to train for war." Byleth replied. The last time either Byleth or Edelgard had swung a weapon to kill was a couple years back when the village was attacked by bandits. Edelgard remembered how amused Byleth had been that the villagers had asked her to teach, completely unaware of her past experience.

"Have you heard of the village’s harvest festival? It seems to be in two weeks’ time." Edelgard turned to look at her wife, letting the implied invitation hang in the air.

Byleth nodded. "The children seem quite excited about some tradition of giving away sweets and candies."

Edelgard takes hold of Byleth’s hand, looking into her eyes. "I was actually thinking of the festival’s dance. I was hoping we could take the chance to go together."

"It won’t be too dangerous? You don’t think anyone will recognize you as the former empress?"

Edelgard smiled at her. "Please, I doubt anyone would consider the former empress to be residing in a small village at the edge of the Empire. And if you can risk keeping your name, I think I can risk keeping one dance."

"Then it’s a date. Dancing with you sounds like a wonderful time, El." Byleth says.

And together they leaned against each other, taking comfort in their shared warmth, safe at last from the distant war and tragedies.

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first piece I've published, so I hope you enjoyed it. Honestly, I felt the game did a disservice by only saying that Edelgard and Byleth spent their lives to make Fódlan a better place in the epilogues. I was really hoping that Edelgard would have to opportunity for a quiet life like she had been all but directly asking for in her conversations with Byleth. So I decided to write that ending myself. I like the idea of Edelgard being a legendary warrior empress that children look up to, and Dorothea probably helped to keep her legacy alive through opera too.


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